A typical prior art ceiling in a commercial building offers a platform for the installation of numerous devices including for example, room lights, emergency lights, cameras, speakers, sensors, Wifi access points (WAP), cell phone repeaters, sprinkler heads, drop-down signage, and HVAC grills. The sensors may include for example, light sensors, temperature sensors, smoke sensors, and occupancy/motion sensors.
The devices are often supplied from multiple sources and attached to multiple control systems. Consequently, the devices often are incompatible with each other and with other device control systems. Particularly, the devices may have different communication protocols and may not communicate with each other or with other control systems. The resulting prior art ceiling may include a redundancy of devices and infrastructure. Further, the prior art ceiling has poor flexibility thereby making upgrades difficult. Such a prior art ceiling with multiple incompatible devices require careful coordination between trades during design and installation resulting in additional time and cost. As a result, the aesthetic appearance of the prior art ceiling represents a hodgepodge of incompatible, non-uniform devices and a hodgepodge of multiple control systems.
Particularly, a typical prior art ceiling presents two distinct problems. First, the prior art ceiling is aesthetically unappealing because the devices are not uniform in appearance, and the installation of openings in the ceiling are not uniform in shape, size, and trim. While architects spend time addressing the aesthetic appearance of a building interior, the appearance of the ceiling is compromised when the contracting teams and consultants install numerous ceiling devices, none of which match in look or color. Second, the prior art ceiling lacks interoperation integration between and among devices and control systems.